Bestselling German author stung by plagiarism claim

One of Germany's most successful authors, Frank Schätzing, was facing the claim yesterday that he lifted large chunks of his latest blockbuster from the internet.

The book, The Swarm, is an apocalyptic eco-thriller which tells the story of how a mysterious undersea being known as Yrr incites the natural world to revolt against humans.

It has been an extraordinary success, selling more than 700,000 copies in Germany. It has even been credited with saving the lives of several German holidaymakers who fled to safety after reading its vivid description of how the tide goes out before a tsunami.

Yesterday, however, a German biologist accused Schätzing of "plundering" much of the material used in the book from his scientific website, <A HREF="'http://www.ozeane.de."

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Thomas Orthmann, a marine biologist and journalist, claims that dozens of passages in The Swarm have been lifted "word for word" from his research.

"I began reading the book in January after someone gave it to me for Christmas," he told the Guardian yesterday from his home in Hamburg.

"At first I started thinking, 'This is uncanny. This is the kind of stuff I could have written'. After reading a couple of hundred pages it dawned on me that I had in fact written it."

He added: "I can see how it can happen. Mr Schätzing admits that he did most of his writing in the evening because of his busy schedule.

"There aren't many people to talk to in the evening. Instead you pour yourself a nice glass of wine, click a couple of times with the mouse, and download everything you need.

"It's a great book. But the experience of reading was diminished after I realised this was my work."

The biologist is demanding €15,000 (£10,270) in compensation and has said he will take the case to court unless Schätzing apologises.

So far, the author has refused to pay up. He has, however, agreed to acknowledge Dr Orthmann in the next edition of his book, which is due to ap pear in Britain and the US later this year, and is the subject of lucrative negotiations for Hollywood film rights.

Yesterday Schätzing's German publisher, Kiepenheuer & Witsch, denied that their author was guilty of plagiarism.

"Frank Schätzing hasn't done anything more than use scientific facts in his novel which are freely available for everybody," the publisher said in a statement. It added: "He used lots of different sources for his novel. But they are all worked into the plot."

Dr Orthmann, though, was confident he would win a court action. The evidence was "overwhelming", he said.

Schätzing is not only a best-selling writer but is also the head of an advertising agency and music production company. He has written several novels.

Critics gave The Swarm, which begins with a marine biologist investigating the behaviour of sea worms and depicts whales attacking ships, an enthusiastic response.